The Turkish Supplementary School organised a loud and impressive demonstration outside Lewisham Town Hall yesterday to demand more support from the Council. The school, which has over 200 students, plays a vital role in supporting the local Turkish community; young and old. As an entirely voluntary organisation they feel that the Council should cover the cost of the space they need to hire every time the school meets. Ultimately they would like a building of their own. We’re committed to working with the school to find the best solution for its future.

Pete, Dan & Cathy

The Supported Shopping Service is a wonderful and vital project which helps older people get to the supermarket once a week. It also gives them to chance to get out the house and socialise with others. When I met with the group this week, one woman told me it was her “lifeline.”
I was shocked to learn then that Labour-run Lewisham Council have cut the small amount of funding it needs to continue. That’s why I’m working with the project to ensure it finds the money to carry on. It’s exactly the type of project that makes a real difference to people’s lives.

Cllr Pete Pattisson

I thought I’d give a plug to a few community events that will be taking place in Whitefoot over the next few weeks. On Saturday 30th May, there will be a summer fete at St Mark’s Church on Baudwin Road from 11am, just opposite the Excalibur Estate. I’ll be popping in for cake and a cup of tea, in between leaflet delivery! On Sunday, there will be the usual monthly workday in the Woodland Walk - meet at the Haddington Road gate at 2pm. Tools and refreshment provided - please bring enthusiasm! And on Saturday 20th June the St John’s Summer Fayre will be taking place, just over the road from Homebase. It starts at midday and there will be the traditional mix of stalls and family entertainment, including a BBQ, plants, a raffle and a grand prize draw. See you there!

Cllr Dan Houghton

We’d like to thank all of you for the welcome you have given us as we have been out knocking on doors across Whitefoot these past few weeks. This weekend we completed our local residents’ survey, knocking on our 5000th door! We’re committed to listening to you and working with you to improve our local area. Do get in touch if we can help.

Pete, Dan & Cathy

Bid for £50,000 to make our community a better place!

Our Whitefoot Assembly now has a budget of £50,000 to make our community a better place. We want to hear from groups of residents who have a great idea to use this money to improve our area.

WHO can make a bid? Any group of residents who live,work or study in Whitefoot Ward.
WHAT can you bid for? Anything that will make our area better, as long as it meets one of our 5 priorities for Whitefoot.
HOW can you make a bid? Just contact the Assemblies Team for a simple application.
WHEN is the deadline? The bids must be received by the Assemblies Team by 5pm on Monday June 22nd.

To find out more, click HERE.

The next Assembly will be held at Greenvale School on Waters Road on Monday July 6th.

Following a terrible accident at a dangerous junction in Lewisham Central, the Mercury published my letter urging Transport for London to improve safety at the ‘Tiger’s Head’ junction at the intersection of Bromley Road and Whitefoot Lane.

Cllr Dan Houghton

Once again one of our young people in Lewisham has become a victim of violent crime. Last week 18 year-old Adam Pervaiz was stabbed to death in a stairwell in Deptford. Adam was one of my students when I was a teacher at Deptford Green School. He was quiet, polite and hard-working. He was a pleasure to teach and an example of all that is good in our young people. It’s such a tragedy and such a waste of a young life. The press reported a local resident saying that incidents like this are “normal around here.” We must never allow tragedies like this to become normal. It’s time to acknowledge the scale of this problem and pledge to do everything we can to rid our communities of this violence.

Cllr Pete Pattisson

The second Phoenix Community Festival was a great success today, with hundreds of local residents enjoying the live music, varied activities and sunny weather. Congratulations to Phoenix for organising the event and we hope to see you there next year!

Today I led a delegation from the ENOUGH! campaign to the Treasury. ENOUGH! is a local campaign to make youth violence history. It’s a coalition of local people and organisations who are deeply concerned about the level of violence that affects young people in southeast London.

In the meeting with Yvette Cooper, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, we urged the Minister to ensure that new funding recently ear-marked for youth projects around the country, be targeted at existing youth organisations, which are tackling youth violence in southeast London.

There are dozens of great youth organisations in Lewisham, but many struggle for funding. We want to see this new money being prioritised for youth projects that are already doing important work to end the violence our young people suffer from every day.

Cllr Pete Pattisson

The Council are holding a free dog microchipping day in Whitefoot on Tuesday 12th May from midday until 4pm at John Henry Housing Office on Verdant Lane. The Council says…

” Free Dog Microchipping Day

Lewisham Council, in conjunction with the south east London branch of the RSPCA, Battersea Cats & Dogs Home and Lewisham’s Safer Neighbourhood Teams will be holding a free microchipping event for dogs owned by Lewisham residents.Microchipping is a safe, permanent form of ID that can help to reunite owners with their dogs should they become lost or stolen.The microchipping session will be on Tuesday 12 May, from 12 midday to 4pm at the John Henry Housing Office, 299 Verdant Lane, Catford SE6 1TP. Residents will be asked to bring:

• Proof of ownership, such as a vet card or bill, photograph, or pedigree papers
• Proof that they live in the borough e.g. Council Tax statement or utility bill.

The first 20 people will also be offered free tag engraving for their dog.

A dog behavioural expert from Battersea Cats & Dogs Home will be on hand to answer questions and give advice on dog behaviour and training.

Residents can call the Animal Welfare team on 020 8314 2098 for further information or turn up on the day.

Cllr Dan Houghton